


Undue Preferential Treatment

by jezero



Category: June 2001 And The Moon Be Still As Bright - Ray Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Blowjobs, Explicit Sexual Content, Frotting, M/M, Mars, Microgravity, Parkhill, Pre-Canon, Sci-Fi, also including, and my own heavy interpretations after thinking for 2 years, just a little, misusing expensive equipment, nerding out about how stuff works in space, ray bradbury - Freeform, relatively accurate microgravity space travel, running away with the scraps bradbury gave me, scifi, velcro, who is not involved in the sexy just wanted to add that
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-06
Updated: 2020-04-06
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:21:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,618
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23506033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jezero/pseuds/jezero
Summary: After 6 months traveling through interplanetary space, Spender and Wilder finally reconnect. You know what I mean.
Relationships: Jeff Spender/Captain Wilder
Comments: 3
Kudos: 3





	Undue Preferential Treatment

**Author's Note:**

> TIny preface. I’ve never written fiction, let alone fanfic before.  
> A few years ago I wanted to do a visual development project of something Bradbury. I read The Martian Chronicles and loved the chapter “And the Moon Be Still as Bright”. I started the project and got annoyed because I don’t care about the implied presence of Martians. The book isn’t really about them ..it’s about humans and how things wouldn’t really be different on Mars. I wanted to make Spender a normal scientist. He’s still looking for life on Mars. He still thinks commercializing and colonizing Mars is terrible. 
> 
> Even if you’ve read the story, here are my ideas about Spender and Wilder as individuals, because there’s pretty much no physical description in the book:
> 
> Spender: Lean, 5’9’’ white dude with scruffy overgrown blonde hair w/ bangs and sparse stubble, 27 y/o  
> Wilder: Slightly stockier, 6 ft, mixed/hispanic looking but not necessarily hispanic, clean shaven with dark hair he pushes back, 36 y/o
> 
> Due to decreased levels of testosterone as well as how fluid (talking about blood in this case) settles in microgravity, astronauts can find themselves being less ..inclined to sexual habits. As well, long duration trips in microgravity (such as the 9 or so months it would take to get to Mars) come with risk of bone density loss, which can be aided by supplementing testosterone. So I made some stuff up to make up for the lack of horny they probably would feel. But why am I pretending any of this actually makes sense? Also, this story takes place in a spaceship in microgravity (sorry sci-fi people, I don’t believe in ships with gravity, yet) just putting that out there in case anyone gets confused about floating stuff.  
> This is supposed to take part before they land (as the story begins then) because I felt Spender and Wilder had a pretty intense connection. And by that, I mean they fucked.

“Shit”, Spender whimpered, waking up in his cabin to find he’d come in his sleep, making a mess in his briefs. This was a problem because here (2056) and now (in a spacecraft fast on its way to Mars) there’s not really a way to get new underwear if you’ve soiled all the ones you have..and at $17,427 per gram they don’t take your wet dreams into account. You don’t want to be floating around with your idiot crew with cum stains all over you, either. Spender put his goggles on and found some tissues to clean up what he could. The space agency had an experiment that involved adding certain hormones into the astronauts’ food and drinking water to retain stability on a long flight. This was probably one of the side effects. This hadn’t happened to him since he was a teenager on Earth..he was pretty sure he had it under control.

Morning arrived, as much as it can for a spaceship in deep space. Spender had breakfast, then went to the lab to help Wilder test some equipment. Being an astrobiologist, he would use this to test the regolith on Mars, and now was the time to make sure everything was working right. Wilder patted him on the shoulder, smiling gently as he got the tools out. 

“Have you been sleeping all right, Spender?” 

“Yes, well I’ve been waking up in the middle of the night...” Spender muttered, “But I always get back to sleep eventually.”

Wilder looked at him curiously as he continued to assemble the machine. 

“Nightmares?” Wilder asked.

“No, it’s ok, I’m just making a fuss. Considering where we are and all, it’s amazing I can even get to bed..I’m fine.” Spender smiled unconvincingly. 

He drifted over to get the binder with assembly instructions and came back, handing Wilder parts as he screwed them together. He watched Wilder’s hands, his mind drifting a little, anxious to ask for help but not being sure how to. Maybe after lunch..maybe in some quiet corridor...

In the confined lab, Wilder squeezed past him to plug the screwdriver into the power, and Spender tried hard to stay calm. He flipped through the binder, pretending to look for something as his mind wandered, imagining Wilder’s firm hands on him, unzipping his flight suit...  
Wilder squeezed past him again, waking him from his daydream.  
“You sure you’re alright, Spender?” 

“Yeah, sorry, I was just thinking about how it’ll be actually using this machine on Mars. What if we find life? What will it look like? What will people back on Earth think about it? Where would it have come from?” 

Wilder laughed, patting Spender on the back firmly, wrapping an arm around him. “I’m glad to have someone with such imagination on my crew. I do hope we find answers to those questions... “ he ruffled Spender’s hair gently and let go. 

“Do you really think we have a chance? How many rovers and how many expeditions before us, and they found only one sample with any hope...”

“All it takes is one, Jeff. I know you believe it’s there more than anyone else. They wouldn’t send an astrobiologist to Mars if they didn’t think there was a chance of finding life.” Wilder smiled reassuringly. 

Spender squirmed at this praise, his face warming as Wilder put a hand over Spender’s only for a few seconds, squeezing it firmly. “Thanks…” More things that would be waking him up at night.

Later that day, Spender was in his cabin writing a report, doing his best to keep himself occupied. He still hadn’t told Wilder about what he was thinking..for fear of getting in trouble with all sorts of people. Of course, the easiest thing would be to take care of his needs on his own..as the rest of the crew was doing. He had plenty of experience with it, but he missed being held, and touched... it just wasn’t the same. His mind wandered to times on Earth when Wilder would come over after work. They told each other that the right thing to do would be to not mess around on the ship, especially with the surveillance everywhere. If they did, people would know. There were no cameras in the cabins, but it would be obvious, not to mention the sounds..there are people whose entire job it is to watch those cameras. 

Spender and Wilder ate dinner with a few of the other astronauts in the cramped dining area. At one point, Wilder’s arm brushed against him and Spender could’ve sworn his cock twitched. He retired to his cabin soon after, relieved to be done for the day. He went to the lavatory to “bathe”, wiping himself down with moist towels. Despite doing everything in his power not to touch himself, his mind kept snapping back to Wilder, watching his hands, his chest in that polo shirt, the warm touch of his hands, roughened from work, but gentle.

Hastily, he dried off and changed into pajamas, consisting of underwear and a soft old T-shirt. He grabbed his goggles and put them around his neck so he wouldn’t have to find them later. Making his way back to his cabin, he locked the door and tried to relax, rubbing his cock through his underwear. It was easy to remember how it felt being with Wilder, the weight of his body pressing into him, stretching him open. Precum pooled at the tip of his cock, soaking through the fabric. Spender pulled one leg of his briefs up, stroking himself as he became hard. He closed his eyes, pumping himself and gently fondling his balls through his underwear. Doing his best to relax, his mind wandered to a year ago on Earth, the one night when Wilder had stayed late at the lab to help him prepare samples. At one point, Wilder had come up from behind him, pressing himself against his ass. Spender could’ve sworn he felt the hardness of the captain’s cock through his pants. He had reached around to grab something in front of him and kissed him on the neck before returning to work, leaving Spender flushed. They had been together for a couple years at that point, and it was curious knowing that his captain was capable of such a display. 

A knock on his door brought him out of his haze, and he pulled his underwear leg back down, tucking his cock into his waistband and adjusting his shirt. 

“Yeah?”

“Hey Jeff, I just wanted to talk for a minute.”

It was Wilder. His voice carried the usual optimism.  
Spender pushed himself toward the door, opening it and trying his best to look like he hadn’t just been jerking off.  
“Can I come in? I wanted to make sure you were alright. For the past few days you haven’t been quite yourself. Usually when Hathaway talks about that nonsense at dinner, you’re all over him, but you didn’t say a word.”

“I’ve been focusing all my energy on controlling myself...” Spender thought. 

He let Wilder in, grabbing a pillow as casually as possible, hoping his shirt wouldn’t drift up. Wilder closed the door behind him.

“The space agency told you about the hormone experiment with the food, right? I’ve been feeling different lately.. I wake up in the middle of the night after the craziest dreams, and uh...” Spender glanced away, hoping Wilder would be able to fill in what he was trying to get at.

“Yes, they told me about it. Because we have lowered testosterone in space; they wanted to bring it to normal levels.” 

“I don’t know about you, but it might be a bit much for me..maybe it has to do with my BMI..but I’ve felt how I did when I first started puberty since we started on it. You know how it is..just unpredictable. Happens in the middle of the night, and while I’m trying to work...makes it hard to focus.” Spender blushed, sighing and covering his face with one hand. 

“Sorry to tell you about this..I was going to take care of it on my own.”

Wilder looked at him, surprised.  
“Is it affecting you now? As we speak?”

“Just a bit..”

“I haven’t had that effect, but I’m here to help make you more comfortable...if you think you’d like that.” Wilder suggested. “I can’t pretend I don’t miss how it was on Earth. It’s been at least 6 months...” 

Spender could feel precum soaking through the cover of the pillow he was holding.  
“Just lock the door and I’m good to go...” 

Wilder obliged, and Spender turned to find his secret medical grade lube he’d hidden away from the first aid kit on the first week in space. He stuck it to a patch of Velcro on the wall as Wilder pushed himself toward him. Wilder nudged the pillow aside, gently squeezing Spender’s balls, working his hand up and feeling his shaft through the boxers. He tugged the underwear down and took Spender’s cock in his hand, spreading the precum leaking from his head. Spender’s breath hitched as Wilder’s warm hand wrapped around him, bucking his hips slightly into his grasp. Wilder leaned into Spender’s flushed face, kissing him gently, pressing him against the wall. He continued stroking Spender’s cock, kissing his neck as his free hand lifted the younger man’s shirt over his head and kissed down his familiar body. Shuddering at the sensation, he gently thrust his hips with need. Wilder continued downward and wrapped his lips around the tip of Spender’s cock, beginning to bob his head back and forth. With his free hand, he began to undo his own pants, stroking his hardening bulge through the taut fabric. Meanwhile, Spender covered his own mouth to contain the sounds he was making. His tongue explored the underside of his head, the taste of Spender’s precum coating his mouth. As respectfully as he could, he rolled his hips, pushing himself further into Wilder’s warm mouth. He had fantasized a lot, but this was one of his favorite things to imagine, his captain’s lips tight around him, encouraging him to go deeper. Wilder gripped Spender’s legs as he pushed himself into his mouth, looking up at his flushed face. Wrapping his hands around the back of Wilder’s head, he guided his cock toward the inviting warmth of his throat. Desperate, he came into his mouth, feeling especially vulgar knowing he wouldn’t have the option to wipe it up. In space, you have to swallow your toothpaste, so the concept wasn’t too out there, he thought.

Wilder looked up at him as hot cum leaked from his mouth, swallowing it so it wouldn’t float around the cabin. Embarrassed at how desperate he had been, Spender glanced away, feeling a sudden awareness of the situation. Wilder wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, adjusting himself so they were face to face again. 

“Is there a way I can log that as protein without getting in trouble?” Wilder laughed. “You should’ve told me sooner you were feeling like this..I would’ve been glad to help.”

“I’ve been feeling it for weeks now.” Spender leaned in and kissed his captain, tasting leftover saltiness as he pulled away.

He brought Wilder closer, feeling his erection against his stomach, reaching into his underwear. Taking both of them into his hand, he fondled their cocks as he began to harden again. Wilder sighed softly as the younger man worked his fingers around them, pumping them in unison. He leaned in and wrapped his arms around the younger man, feeling his breath warm on his neck. He kissed his shoulder, lingering there as his hands made their way down and back, tugging his underwear loose and gently caressing his ass before beginning to spread him open. Bucking his hips, Spender ground himself against Wilder with need, wrapping his arms around him as he felt two fingers at his entrance, working him apart. 

“Is this going to be different than it was on Earth? I mean, do we need to use the harness?” Spender asked quietly, rutting their cocks together eagerly. It was hard to pretend as if he hadn’t run through the scenario in his head before.

“We can for stability, as long as we don’t make a bunch of noise hitting against the wall or anything ..Parkhill’s right next to us, and you know how he gets.” 

Spender rolled his eyes. “Not my fault he doesn’t have someone to cuddle with. I’m sure someone would help him if he asked nicely....not me, of course.”

His breath hitched as Wilder spread his fingers apart inside of him, continually loosening the tight ring of muscle. 

“Yeah, it would probably be good to move over there soon.” Wilder murmured, working his fingers back out of Spender and grabbing the lube he had previously Velcro’d to the wall.  
\--  
Hi, sorry, here to explain briefly. The harness is used for emergency landing operations, like those fold out seats that flight attendants use, mounted to the wall. It’s my story and I can make shit up! Also NASA supposedly did begin to make some kind of sex harness long ago. I’m sure they wouldn’t like to think of it now.  
\--  
Spender pulled his underwear off, turning to the cabinet and opening it, strapping himself in against the wall. The captain chuckled at the sight of Spender, cock dangling and strapped in, dripping precum again. 

“How much do you think this cost to engineer? Only to be used for this...” Wilder laughed sarcastically.

“I have no idea, but since I learned that’s what was inside the cabinet, I knew what I wanted to use it for...”

Wilder drew closer, squeezing a bit of lube onto his fingers as he brought them back to Spender’s hole, stretching him easily now, his cock twitching with anticipation. The younger man idly stroked himself, focusing on his captain’s fingers pushing in and out of him. Gently, he pulled them out, lubricating himself before pressing into Spender. He held onto both sides of the harness as he drove himself deeper, enveloped by his warmth. Lifting Spender’s chin, he leaned in and kissed him, working his tongue into his mouth as he thrusted steadily. Beneath him, Spender was stifling his moans as Wilder’s thick cock pushed deeper and stretched him more than he could have hoped for in the past weeks. He was lost in the heat, Wilder pulling almost all the way out and back in, hitting right against his prostate, their mouths intertwined as the captain wrapped his arms around Spender for stability. Letting his mouth relax, he pressed his face against Spender’s neck, his thrusts slowing as he heard talking outside. Holding his breath for a second, he listened and Spender looked up at him, perspiring slightly and adjusting his hold on the harness. Looking down, Wilder wrapped a hand around Spender’s cock, stroking it as they listened to their crewmates’ voices fade down the hall. 

Flushed, Spender laughed quietly, “Good we didn’t try to do this during working hours at least, we would have definitely been interrupted…” 

“I was so excited that you wanted to do this again that I nearly forgot the risk...I was afraid the next time we could be together would be when we get back to Earth, if ever…” Wilder pondered. “I didn’t want to get in trouble or have anything get in the way of the mission, but I really do love you, Spender.”

He leaned in and kissed him passionately, resuming his thrusting while keeping a firm grip on Spender’s cock. Spender’s legs wrapped around him, gritting his teeth and pulling him closer as he felt the tip of him against his prostate, gasping lightly with every stroke. Digging his fingers into Wilder’s shirt, he held on as his rhythm intensified, hoping they were the only ones who could hear the captain’s balls as they slapped against him. Spender’s cum spurted into Wilder’s hand as he pumped his cock, small droplets oozing off and floating in microgravity. He tightened around Wilder, squeezing him as he came inside, feeling his hot cum fill him. They panted, Spender letting go of his tight grip on the harness as Wilder slowly pulled out, so as to not make a mess with abrupt movements. Spender looked up at him, sweating, flushed, admiring how he looked even when disheveled. 

“There’s a towel in that drawer…” he suggested, as the captain released his hold on Spender, inspecting his hand coated in semen that clung in microgravity. He spread his fingers apart, watching the viscous fluid stretch. 

“Seems a bit different from what I remember, do you think it’s the irradiated food?”

Wilder found the towel, wiping himself and his hand off, handing it to Spender so he could dry himself. 

“I’m sure being in space affects our bodies in all sorts of strange ways.” Spender remarked, wiping himself clean. “We go to space for a year and our DNA can change… so I’m not surprised at the difference. Though I’d be interested in doing a test to see if your theory is right.” he laughed, catching his shirt Wilder tossed to him.

Tugging it over his head, he hugged him, burying his face into his neck. Wilder smiled and held him tight, enjoying his warmth and the familiar feeling of Spender’s body, made leaner by the rigorous training they’d been through. 

“It’d be nice if we could be together tonight,” Wilder mused, breathing in Spender’s scent, unchanged by the foreign environment. “D’you want to come over to my cabin? It’s a bit more private over there...” 

Spender blushed, smiling sheepishly. “Do you even have to ask? Why don’t you go over there first so we don’t look too conspicuous. And Wilder… “ He paused, feeling his heart beating hard out of earnestness. It was really nice, being able to do this with you again. I’ve been so busy with getting ready for the mission that I’ve been completely ignoring these urges.”

He held Wilder’s face in his hands, kissing his cheek. Looking him up and down, he helped him tuck his shirt back in and zip up, smoothing his stray hairs back into place.

Wilder smiled, watching Spender’s green eyes as he floated around, straightening him up. “Thanks. See you soon, Jeff..” Looking at the mirror on the inside of the door, he tugged on his shirt, bracing himself in case anyone was outside. No one was.

Spender collected himself, changing back into his sleeping clothes and taking care to put the harness back as it was. Making sure everything seemed in order, he put on his glasses and drifted into the hallway, closing his door. As soon as he did, the door next to him opened, Parkhill pushing himself into the corridor. 

“Spender!” He groaned, taking one earphone out. “Mission control has been trying to contact you. They said your emergency abort signal had been flipped on. What the hell were you and the Captain doing in there?”

Spender averted his gaze as his brain scrambled to come up with something believable. 

“I had noticed the light had come on too, and we were trying to get it fixed. It’s not very convenient with the 15 minute delay to try to solve small problems like that with mission control from here.”

“With the door locked? Sure, Spender… you’d better write a report and tell them if that’s what was going on.”

“Fine,” he muttered, turning to head to his cabin.

“It’s not very professional of you to misuse the equipment..what if you had broken it? What if we actually needed to use those and it didn’t work because you’d been using it for sodomy?” 

“Guess I’d die, I dunno. I’d say it was worth it.” He looked Parkhill in the eye, smirking at the disgust on his face. “Anyway, if what I was using it for broke it, I can’t imagine it would do shit for us in a real emergency. You can come inspect it if you’d like.” He taunted. 

“Just take care of it…” Parkhill grimaced at the images Spender had just put into his head, closing his door firmly.

Using the handrails in the hallway to push off, Spender made his way to the captain’s room, coming in and closing the door behind him. Wilder had a small window in his room with the shutters open, looking out into space. He looked at Spender, holding his arm out and beckoning him over.  
“I haven’t seen this open in a long time.” Spender murmured.  
“I know, I always use the larger window if I want to look outside. I get overwhelmed knowing I can see this from my bedroom.”  
Spender nodded as Wilder wrapped his arm around him, both of them looking into the rich darkness of space. 

“I feel afraid looking out into it, knowing how little there is between us and death, darkness, nothingness… but I feel hopeful too.” Spender said, taking Wilder’s hand in his grip, intertwining their fingers together. “I know that I’m safe here, and we’re going to take care of one another.”

“We will,” Wilder said softly. “Always.”

Spender turned around, burying his face against Wilder’s chest, sticking one hand up the back of the captain’s shirt as he closed his eyes. Wilder closed the blinds, wrapping his arms around him and pulling a blanket around them both. Resting his nose against Spender’s hair, he fell asleep, calmed by the familiar scent. They had only a few more months of this comfort before they’d be landing on Mars.

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to give Spender and Wilder some love (more like I wanted them to give each other some love) so I thought I'd try out writing in this weird quarantine time. Thank you for reading!!


End file.
